Essaouira was the first commercial fishing port in Morocco, built up around 1875, and the daily auction at the Government Fish Weigh Station is still the most exciting half hour in town. Late afternoon when the boats come in, batches of fish are dumped on the floor in the central hall, weighed, and bid on by buyers shouting from the edge of the circle while a man in a white jacket calls the prices. You will see thirty different species in an hour, including the occasional small shark.
To find it: walk toward the port from Place Moulay Hassan; just where the sea wall on the right ends, look left for the outdoor fish market and turn down the lane. About twenty feet on the right are big metal doors with no sign — go straight in.